Archive for the 'Isaiah Thomas' Category

TENNIS

Serena Williams beat Goerges in the semis at Wimbledon in easy straight sets 6-2, 6-4. She will face Germany’s Angelique Kerber on Saturday in the finals. Serena is 36 years with an almost 1 year old baby girl. Before maternity leave, Williams was ranked #1 in the world, but after 13 months off, her ranking dropped to #183. Tournament organizers, however, agreed to seed her 25th at Wimbledon in order to show the tennis world they don’t penalize women for taking time off for maternity leave.

BASKETBALL

After a hip injury causing Isaiah Thomas to bounce around the League from Boston, to Cleveland, to the Lakers, it’s been reported Thomas will sign a one-year $2 million deal with the Denver Nuggets as their 6th man. It’s also been reported Jeremy Lin will leave the Brooklyn Nets and head to the Atlanta Hawks.

BASKETBALL

Boston fans love their players, even their former players as evidenced by the reception Isaiah Thomas received on Wednesday night when the the Celtics hosted their eastern conference rivals, the Cleveland Cavaliers. Thomas (and a few other players) were dealt to the Cavs last summer in exchange for Kyrie Irving. Thomas didn’t suit up for the game, as he’s still recovering from a hip injury, but the fans still gave him a standing ovation. Thomas was moved and said, “But [the fans] showed their true colors, like they always do, and that’s — I keep saying it, but it’s genuine love on both sides. The fans are everything here.” The game didn’t match the hype of the rivalry and the Celtics put the Cavs away with a 102-88 win.

The Ball family has started a new season of their “reality” show. Dad LaVar and 18 year old LiAngelo Ball and 16 year old LaMelo Ball landed in Lithuania to a swarm of reporters and curious spectators. Playing in this European League will be an interesting and potentially punishing experiment for the boys, as the League is very physical.

FOOTBALL

The Pro Football Hall of Fame has named 15 finalists including 4 players on the list in their first year of eligibility: wide receiver Randy Moss, linebacker Ray Lewis, offensive guards Steve Hutchinson and Brian Urlacher. Wide receiver Terrell Owens is also back on the list for third time (didn’t make the final cut the last two years). The list will again be cut on February 3rd, the day before the Super Bowl, and anywhere from 4 to 8 inductees will be announced. An inductee needs to get at least 80% support of the voting board. The board is only required to vote on the inductees football contributions and not consider other factors.

The Buffalo Bills are showing their thanks to Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton for throwing the game winning touchdown against the Baltimore Ravens, knocking them out of the playoffs and putting the Bills in for the first time since 1999. Fans are pouring money into the Andy and Jordan Dalton Foundation, with many contributions coming in $17 increments (it’s been 17 years since the Bills have made the playoffs). As of Wednesday morning, the Foundation has raked in over $170,000. The Foundation works with Cincinnati hospitals to help children in need.

BASKETBALL

Former Boston Celtic Isaiah Thomas made his long awaited season debut with the Cleveland Cavaliers on Tuesday night against the Portland Trailblazers. Thomas suffered a hip injury last March and said he’s feeling great (scored 17 points in 19 minutes) but still needs to restrict his playing time, so unfortunately for anxious fans, he won’t be playing against his former team on Wednesday night. Cavs 127, Trailblazers 110.

BASKETBALL

It was no surprise the Cavaliers point guard, Kyrie Irving, wanted out of Cleveland, but the trade with the Boston Celtics appeared lopsided to many sports fans. The Celtics gave up Isaiah Thomas, Jae Crowder, Ante Zizic, and the Brooklyn Nets 2018 first round pick for Kyrie. LeBron James took to social media to express his appreciation of his time with Irving and said, “That’s the only way to be to the kid! Special talent/guy! Nothing but respect and what a ride it was our 3 years together Young Gode”. LeBron and Irving will face each other early on when the Celtics head to Cleveland on October 17th for the first game of the NBA regular season.

FOOTBALL

With the recent violence in Charlottesville, VA, ESPN was concerned for their broadcaster Robert Lee, who shares a similar name to the Confederate General Robert E. Lee, whose statue was removed this month. ESPN apparently consulted with their broadcaster and asked if he’d prefer to be relocated from covering the Virginia-William and Mary game, and Lee agreed. ESPN explained the decision by saying, “We collectively made the decision with Robert to switch games as the tragic events in Charlottesville were unfolding, simply because of the coincidence of his name. In that moment it felt right to all parties. It’s a shame that this is even a topic of conversation and we regret that who calls play by play for a football game has become an issue.”

BASKETBALL

The Washington Wizards’ defense were all over the Celtics’ 5′ 9″ Isaiah Thomas in game 5, so Thomas mixed things up by setting screens for teammate Al Horford who came out strong to lead the team. Then Avery Bradley added a playoff career high of 29 points to put the Celtics up 3-2 in the Eastern Conference semi-final. Game 6 is on Friday night. Celtics 123, Wizards 101.

Speaking of Isaiah Thomas, he was fined $25K for swearing at at a disrespectful fan during game 3 against the Wizards. The video of him yelling at the fan was sent out on social media. He said “I’ll f— you up. You know that. Make sure after, come right here and say it.”

OTHER

In an interview for GQ Magazine, Dwayne, “The Rock“, Johnson said he might consider running for President at some point in the future. He said, “A year ago it started coming up more and more. There was a real sense of earnestness, which made me go home and think, ‘Let me really rethink my answer and make sure I am giving an answer that is truthful and also respectful.’ I didn’t want to be flippant.”

BASKETBALL

Isaiah Thomas was the star of the Boston Celtics vs Washington Wizards Eastern conference semi-final game 2. On what would have been his sister’s 23rd birthday, Thomas took control of the game and scored 53 points. After the game, he told reporters everything he does is for his late sister. He said, “My sister wouldn’t want me to stop. The only thing about it is, once I leave this gym, I hit reality and she’s not here. So that’s the tough part. But, when I’m in this arena, I can lock in and I know everything I do is for her.” Celtics now lead the series 2-0. Boston 129, Washington 119.

In the first game of the Western conference semi-final, the Golden State Warriors looked fresh and came out strong after their 8 days of rest from sweeping the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round. The Utah Jazz appeared overmatched from the very start of the game. Steph Curry put on a show and made 7-1 Rudy Gobert, known as “The Stifle Tower”, literally spin. Warriors 106, Jazz 94.

FOOTBALL

Nick Saban, Alabama’s head coach, will get a 3 year contract extension and reportedly will be making $11.125 million this season (including a $4 million signing bonus). The contract will run through 2025 with a total of $65 million (not including incentives). The Crimson Tide clearly want to make sure Saban doesn’t leave the school for a rival or for the NFL.